Discover some of the lesser-known but useful apps that should be install on their new laptop or PC to enhance productivity and efficiency. Of course, you probably have a list of apps that you install by default. But if you just stick with what you know, you’ll likely miss out on some hidden gems. Here are 16 such apps that everyone should download on their new PC.
The Basics First
Some apps are so ubiquitous that they don’t need convincing, so I’ll get rid of them first.That’s
Firefox: Although Chrome and its derivatives have taken the internet by storm, we still recommend Firefox for its perfect balance of novelty and privacy. Get these extras and you’ll never look back.
VLC Media Player: If you watch movies on your computer, you should have VLC Media Player. It plays any video you can throw at it and has been solid for decades.
7-Zip: This is the best app for zipping and unzipping files (for most people).7-Zip is free to use and supports all common compression formats such as zip, rar and 7z.
SumatraPDF: This is a fast and lightweight PDF reader. Download it if you don’t want your browser to open all PDF files.
IrfanView: If you need an image viewer, look no further than IrfanView. It also has basic batch processing and editing features.
PatchMyPC
Whether it’s a new machine or a clean install of Windows on an old PC, PatchMyPC is essential. Displays a list of useful applications and lets you choose the ones you want to install on your computer. Once selected, click a button and PatchMyPC will install all applications at once.
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Also, these applications install in the background so you can continue working or playing on your Laptop or PC without interruption. Even if you already have a machine set up, you can use PatchMyPC to quickly update all your applications.It also automatically updates apps that require manual installation when they release a new version.
Microsoft PowerToys
Microsoft PowerToys is a collection of tools that add advanced features to your computer, such as B. Window management, fast mouse pointer positioning and a Spotlight-like search function. Take the time to browse the toolset to find the ones you will be using most often. We also have a handy checklist to help you.
Portmaster
Portmaster is a useful firewall application that allows you to block applications and services from calling your home.Basically, it shows a list of applications that are contacting different servers on the internet and allows them to prevent it.
Some of these calls are to check for app updates and other useful tasks, but some of these pings are also unnecessary. You can easily check and block them with Portmaster. The app also lets you choose privacy-friendly DNS services like Cloudflare DNS or AdGuard DNS, which will automatically block trackers and malware.
Everything
Everything is a free application that greatly speeds up searching on your Windows computer by indexing the names of all files on your computer. Returns results quickly. If you remember a specific name or file type but don’t know where you saved the document on your Laptop or PC, Anything can help you find it quickly. ShareX is all you need. It doesn’t look great, but it works incredibly well and is highly customizable.You can set up ShareX for complex workflows, e.g. B. Uploading screenshots to multiple cloud storage locations at the same time or archiving screenshots to the clipboard.
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The app also supports screen recording, capturing GIFs and scrolling screenshots. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the tools, check out our guide to setting up ShareX easily.
MusicBee
If you have a personal music library, you should check out MusicBee. It is a great helper to manage and play songs from your music collection.I’ve used it to stream Hi-Res audio files from my home server and the experience so far has been great. The app adds large libraries fairly quickly and also quickly scans your library as new music is added.
Caliber
Caliber is the best application for bibliophiles, especially those who have an e-book reader. It can manage a huge library of e-books and convert them to formats suitable for almost any e-book reader.
Works particularly well with Kindle and you’ll find that you can use it to send all your eBooks from your computer to your eReader.Caliber is also a powerful eBook reading app for those who prefer to read books on their Laptop Or PC
Obsidian
If you need a good free writing app for Windows, try Obsidian. It has a clean user interface, including a comfortable and distraction-free typing mode. The app supports Markdown, making it ideal for those who publish their words online.
Bitwarden
Everyone should use a password manager, and Bitwarden is the best free option for most people.The free tier has almost all the features you’ll ever need from a password manager, and the app is available on all major platforms, which means your passwords are available on all your devices
If not, you’ve used a password manager before, it’s hard to find a better option than Bitwarden. If you’re willing to pay for a better app interface on Apple devices, document storage, and better password sharing features, 1Password is a great alternative.
FXSound
FXSound is a great free equalizer and volume control app. It has many useful equalizer settings to optimize audio output for different types of sounds. For example, the Movies setting automatically increases the volume of dialogue and mutes other sounds.Many modern films, for some inexplicable reason, have an incredibly low volume of dialogue.
Ventoy
You should always have a bootable USB stick handy because you never know when you’ll need it. If your computer is infected or your hard drive crashes, you can use a bootable USB drive to start your favorite operating system and fix problems.
Ventoy is a great app for this because it only asks you once to format the USB drive. From here you can copy as many operating system disk image files (iso) as you want and boot any operating system copied to the disk.
